Radical Outreach: The Recovery Apostolic Ministry and Evangelism

by Hunter, George G., III

• ISBN13: 9780687074419
• ISBN10: 068707441X
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2003-05-01
• Publisher: Abingdon Pr

Summary

This book tells how the contemporary church can reclaim its ancient witness through hands-on ministries with the unchurched.When it comes to transforming people's lives and leading them into active Christian discipleship, why does there seem to be such a difference between the church we read about in the New Testament and our own churches today? What was it about those earliest Christians that empowered them to spread the gospel with such startling results? One core reason, says George G. Hunter III, is that they reached out into the communities in which they lived. Instead of building fortress churches and inviting others to come join them inside the walls, the earliest Christians spread out, engaging in hands-on ministries to meet the needs of people where they were. The churches today that have reclaimed this apostolic ministry are the ones that do not rely on worship, or even preaching, to woo the unchurched into visiting them. Rather, they use outreach ministries -- everything from recovery groups to English-as-a-second-language classes -- to reach those most in need of the healing word of the gospel.

Author Biography

George G. Hunter III is Distinguished Professor of Church Growth and Evangelism at Asbury Theological Seminary in Wilmore, Kentucky.

Table of Contents

Foreword	9	(4)
Preface	13	(8)
Western Christianity's ``Corinthian'' Future	21	(20)
An Urban Society, with Many Cultures	22	(2)
A Dysfunctional Church, with a Mission	24	(2)
Paul's Prescription for Church Renewal	26	(2)
Lessons from the Snook, Texas, Foxhunting Club	28	(3)
The Great Commission Manual	31	(10)
A Short History of ``Apostolic Ministry''	41	(26)
How Church People Misperceive Lost People	43	(2)
Jesus' Ministry with ``Impossible'' People	45	(4)
Mission of the Apostles to Impossible People and Peoples	49	(8)
The Church's (Reluctant) Mission to Rural Peoples	57	(2)
The Church's (Reluctant) Mission to ``Barbarian'' Peoples	59	(2)
Three Cases---Two Global, One Local	61	(6)
Apostolic Ministry Through ``Cultural Relevance''	67	(30)
The Unconscious Pathology of Old East Side Church	68	(1)
Six Indicators That Old East Side Is in ``Deep Weeds''	69	(2)
Old East Side's Losing Game Plan	71	(3)
Recovering a More ``Apostolic Way'' of ``Doing Church''	74	(3)
Insights for an ``Indigenous Strategy''	77	(2)
Culture Communicates	79	(3)
Form and Meaning	82	(2)
The Periodic Loss and Recovery of Indigenous Christianity	84	(6)
Top Ten Insights Supporting Culturally Relevant Christianity	90	(4)
FECs (Frequently Expressed Challenges)	94	(3)
Apostolic Ministry Through an Empowered Laity	97	(22)
The Early Christian Lay Movement	99	(1)
The Priesthood of All Priests	100	(3)
The ``Celtic'' Exception	103	(1)
The Priesthood of All Believers---Proposed	104	(1)
Richard Baxter As Newton and Darwin for Traditional Protestants	105	(2)
The Priesthood of All Believers---Implemented!	107	(2)
The Emerging Revolution in Lay Ministries	109	(3)
On Either Side of the Mainline (Old line, Sideline) Denominations	112	(3)
The Indispensable Role of Small Groups	115	(4)
Recovery Ministries As a Prototype for Outreach Ministries	119	(30)
Addiction, As (Mis)understood, in Historical Perspective	123	(2)
The Multiple (Known) Causes of Addiction	125	(5)
Addiction and Recovery in Informed Perspective	130	(2)
The Story, the Steps, and the Serenity Prayer	132	(5)
Addiction and Recovery in Theological Perspective	137	(4)
Opportunities in Recovery Ministries	141	(3)
The ``Underground Awakening''	144	(5)
First Baptist Church, Leesburg, As a Church for Everyone	149	(25)
To ``All the People We Can Find That No Other Church Seems to Want''	150	(1)
The ``Roesel Revolution''	151	(2)
``Proactive Outreach'' Begins, and Then Multiplies	153	(3)
``Ministry Village''	156	(4)
Insights from the Women's Care Center	160	(5)
First Baptist Church's Emerging Future	165	(1)
``Positioning'' First Baptist Church, Leesburg, Within an Apostolic Perspective	166	(2)
Critique for an Even Greater Mission	168	(6)
Witness Through Ministry, Hospitality, and Conversation	174	(21)
The First Disciples of Jesus (John 1:35-42)	176	(5)
The ``Chain'' of Experiences, and the Sources of the ``Links''	181	(2)
Jesus and the Woman of Samaria (John 4)	183	(3)
Five Questions for a Congregation Considering Radical Outreach	186	(2)
Five Approaches to Reaching People Like the Samaritan Woman	188	(2)
Communicating in Many Ways, Especially Through Conversation	190	(5)
Postscript: Old East Side's Enormous Challenge: The ``Cultural Enclave''	195	(13)
Notes	208	(14)
Index	222